Seedlings Education 4

Education institution number:
47051
Service type:
Homebased Network
Definition:
Not Applicable
Total roll:
46
Telephone:
Address:

3/12 Laidlaw Way, East Tamaki, Auckland

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Seedlings Education 4

ERO’s Akanuku | Assurance Review reports provide information about whether a service meets and maintains regulatory standards. Further information about Akanuku | Assurance Reviews is included at the end of this report.

ERO’s Judgement

Regulatory standards

ERO’s judgement

CurriculumMeeting
Premises and facilitiesMeeting
Health and safetyMeeting
Governance, management and administrationMeeting

Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed non-compliances and is now taking reasonable steps to meet regulatory standards.

Background

This is one of four networks managed by Seedlings Homebased Education Ltd. Education and care is provided in the educator’s, or the children’s, home. A qualified visiting teacher supports educators to meet regulatory requirements and curriculum expectations. Most of the children attending are of Tongan heritage.

Summary of Review Findings

The service curriculum respects and supports the right of each child to be confident in their own culture and encourages children to understand and respect other cultures. Educators engage in meaningful, positive interactions to enhance children’s learning and nurture reciprocal relationships. The service curriculum provides a language-rich environment that supports children’s learning.

An ongoing process of self-review helps the service maintain and improve the quality of its education and care. A philosophy statement guides the service’s operation.

Service leaders must ensure compliance systems and practices continue to be implemented and monitored to maintain regulatory standards.

Key Next Steps

Next steps include:

  • Strengthen the extent to which the service curriculum is informed by assessment, planning and evaluation that demonstrates an understanding of children’s learning, their interests, whānau, and life contexts. 
  • Increase the opportunities children have to hear and speak te reo Māori in meaningful learning contexts. 

Actions for Compliance 

Since the onsite visit, the service has provided ERO with evidence that shows it has addressed the following non-compliances: 

  • Maintaining a record of emergency drills carried out, that includes type, date and time and evidence of how evaluation of the drills informed the annual review of the emergency plan (HS7).
  • Implementing a system of regular appraisal for educators (GMA6).

Next ERO Review 

The next ERO review is likely to be an Akarangi | Quality Evaluation. 

Patricia Davey
Director of Early Childhood Education (ECE)

8 February 2024 

Information About the Service

Early Childhood Service NameSeedlings Education 4
Profile Number47051
LocationEast Tamaki, Auckland
Service typeHome-based service
Number licensed for50 children, including up to 50 aged under 2
Service roll34
Review team on siteOctober 2023 
Date of this report8 February 2024
Most recent ERO report(s)Education Review, December 2020; Education Review, March 2017

General Information about Assurance Reviews 

All services are licensed under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008. The legal requirements for early childhood services also include the Licensing Criteria for Education and Care Services 2008.

Services must meet the standards in the regulations and the requirements of the licensing criteria to gain and maintain a licence to operate. 

ERO undertakes an Akanuku | Assurance Review process in any centre-based service:

  • having its first ERO review – including if it is part of a governing organisation
  • previously identified as ‘not well placed’ or ‘requiring further development’
  • that has moved from a provisional to a full licence
  • that have been re-licenced due to a change of ownership
  • where an Akanuku | Assurance Review process is determined to be appropriate.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

All early childhood services are required to promote children’s health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements. Before the review, the staff and management of a service completed an ERO Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

  • curriculum
  • premises and facilities
  • health and safety practices
  • governance, management and administration.

As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO assesses whether the regulatory standards are being met. In particular, ERO looks at a service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:

  • emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)
  • physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)
  • suitable staffing (including qualification levels; safety checking; teacher certification; ratios)
  • relevant evacuation procedures and practices.

As part of an Akanuku | Assurance Review ERO also gathers and records evidence through:

  • discussions with those involved in the service
  • consideration of relevant documentation, including the implementation of health and safety systems
  • observations of the environment/premises, curriculum implementation and teaching practice. 

Seedlings Education 4 - 02/12/2020

1 Evaluation of Seedlings Education 4

How well placed is Seedlings Education 4 to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

Seedlings Education 4 is well placed to promote positive learning outcomes for children.

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Seedlings Education 4 is licensed for up to 50 children from infancy to five years of age. Educators provide care and education for up to four children at a time. Most of the children in this network are of Tongan heritage. A small number of children are of Māori heritage.

Programme coordinators are qualified, experienced teachers and bring varied teaching experiences to their roles. They regularly visit educators in their homes and help them plan learning programmes for children. Coordinators also monitor health and safety provision.

Seedlings Education's philosophy focuses on supporting and nurturing children in collaboration with educators, whānau and the wider community. A priority is for children to be immersed in their own home culture and language.

Good progress has been made since ERO's 2017 review. The ownership and leadership structure of the service has changed since the review. There has been an emphasis on strengthening collaborative leadership and decision making. Documentation translated into children's home languages has contributed to meaningful connections with whānau.

This review was one of four homebased network reviews in a cluster operated by Seedlings Education Ltd.

The Review Findings

Programme coordinators establish respectful relationships with children and families linked to each educator. They provide detailed reports and feedback to build educator capability in catering for and extending children's learning. Infants, toddlers and young children benefit from a curriculum that is responsive to their learning needs.

Programmes and resources support children's cultural contexts. Home languages are prioritised as many educators share the same cultural heritage. Children have opportunities to develop their creativity, early literacy and mathematical knowledge.

Programme coordinators meet to develop planning cycles that have a different focus each month. Clear and useful records focus on a child's wellbeing, learning and care. Coordinators organise outdoor excursions and playgroup/discovery days that offer opportunities for educators and children to play and learn together. They promote online communication and learning with digital technologies.

The service's focus on learning through play and the principles of Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum, are evident in planning and documentation. The programme coordinator and educators regularly share children's learning with parents/whānau. Daily journals and learning portfolios document aspirations and inform parents of children's learning experiences. Documents are translated and tailored to meet the learning needs of the children.

Good transition practices nurture children's sense of belonging and participation in the network and their transition to school.

There are strong systems to support the professional practice for the programme coordinators and educators. Collaborative ways of working are fostered by everyone in the service. Individual strengths are valued and used to support all four networks. Professional learning opportunities are well established. Mentoring opportunities are strengthening individual practice.

Documentation shows that children experience a curriculum that reflects the dual heritage of Aotearoa New Zealand. Programme coordinators promote a bicultural curriculum. They support the use of te reo Māori in educators' homes. Learning stories evidence the use of te reo Māori and integration of tikanga Māori across all networks.

Good systems are in place to identify and monitor the health and safety of adults and children in the homes. Appropriate policies guide practice and are regularly reviewed. The service makes good use of internal evaluation to plan long and short-term strategies that focus on improvement.

The new owner/manager is an active participant in the service and fosters a team approach. He has a commitment to achieving a high-quality, home-based education service. There is an organisational culture of trust and respect. The management team work collaboratively to drive ongoing improvement and develop learning partnerships with educators, families and the community.

Key Next Steps

Key next steps for the coordinators/leaders are to develop strategies to evaluate:

  • how well they support educators to strengthen their teaching practice

  • the effectiveness of the programme in achieving high quality learning outcomes for all children

  • how well strategic goals are leading to improvements in children's education and care.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Seedlings Education 4 completed an ERO Home-based Education and Care Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

  • curriculum
  • premises and facilities
  • health and safety practices
  • governance, management and administration.

During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:

  • emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)

  • physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)

  • suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)

  • evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.

All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

Steve Tanner

Director Review and Improvement Services Northern

Northern Region

2 December 2020

The Purpose of ERO Reports

The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.

2 Information about the Home-based Education and Care Service

Location

East Tamaki, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

47051

Institution type

Homebased Network

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

50 children, including up to 50 aged under 2

Service roll

49

Standard or Quality Funded

Standard

Gender composition

Male 26 Female 23

Ethnic composition

Māori
Tongan
other ethnic group

1
47
1

Number of qualified coordinators in the network

2

Required ratios of staff educators to children

Under 2

1:2

Over 2

1:4

Review team on site

September 2020

Date of this report

2 December 2020

Most recent ERO report(s)

Education Review

March 2017

Education Review

October 2012

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:

Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children

Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children

Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children

Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.

Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.

ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.

A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.

For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to the draft methodology for ERO reviews in Home-based Education and Care Services: July 2014

ERO’s Overall Judgement

The overall judgement that ERO makes will depend on how well the service promotes positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:

  • Very well placed

  • Well placed

  • Requires further development

  • Not well placed

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.

Seedlings Education 4 - 29/03/2017

1 Evaluation of Seedlings Education 4

How well placed is Seedlings Education 4 to promote positive learning outcomes for children?

Not well placed

Requires further development

Well placed

Very well placed

ERO's findings that support this overall judgement are summarised below.

Background

Seedlings Education 4 is part of the Seedlings Education Ltd home-based education and care service in Auckland. It is licensed for up to 50 children from infancy to five years of age. Over 90 percent of children are Tongan. Educators provide programmes in their own or the child's home for up to four children at a time. Families and educators are carefully matched to support children's wellbeing.

The service's philosophy promotes the values of integrity, respect, honesty and environmental awareness. Building and maintaining trusting, long term relationships with whānau are guiding principles.

Programme coordinators are well qualified, experienced teachers. They regularly visit educators in their homes and support them to plan educational programmes for children, as well as monitoring health and safety provision.

The service providers/directors are responsible for the governance and management of the service. In 2016 they strengthened health and safety systems and practices in response to legislation and regulation requirements.

This is the first ERO review for Seedlings Education 4. The review was part of a cluster of four home-based network reviews in the Seedlings Education Ltd organisation.

The Review Findings

Children's learning records show that they are well supported to develop their interests, strengths and preferences through everyday experiences. Educators share the same cultural background as the children in their care. As a result programmes are strongly reflective of families' Tongan culture and identity. Educators prioritise the use of children's home languages. Coordinators tailor resources and support for specific cultural contexts.

Children and educators have opportunities to attend the regular outdoor excursions and organised playgroups and discovery days. Coordinators and educators encourage and support children to experience different environments where they have opportunities to play with and learn alongside others. The service provides an extensive library of books and other resources to support and expand educators' in-home programmes. Feedback from educators and parents indicates that these resources are much appreciated and valued.

Parents' input into the programme is actively sought. They are very positive about the education and care their children receive through the Seedlings service. Parents readily respond to requests to contribute ideas and suggestions for improvement. Seedlings directors are considering ways that parent survey feedback could be used to further personalise and enhance the services they provide for families.

Coordinators maintain clear and useful records of their visits to educators. They identify how well educators interact with children and focus on children's care and wellbeing. Coordinators encourage educators to support children's learning by modelling good teaching practices. Professional development opportunities for educators are well established.

The head programme coordinator provides very effective curriculum leadership, maintaining a broad overview of programmes and skilfully guiding coordinators to improve educator practice. Programme planning frameworks align with Te Whāriki, the early childhood curriculum. Coordinators could now review and refine the ease of use and usefulness of planning, assessment and evaluation documents. This work could help educators to better respond to children's interests, strengths and needs.

Leaders work well together in an established structure where relationships are respectful and productive. Coordinators are knowledgeable, and show a willingness to learn and improve their practice. Coordinators and educators are well resourced to be effective in their work and to continually improve. A well considered induction process and relevant professional learning opportunities support ongoing improvement in teaching practice. Directors are deliberately growing leadership capability across the service.

Seedlings Education operates under a strong governance framework, guided by a mission statement and guiding principles. Directors express their commitment to biculturalism and affirmation of Māori as tangata whenua. They acknowledge that continuing to deepen bicultural understandings and practices at all levels of the service remains a priority.

Directors and coordinators have a good understanding of internal evaluation and use it as a tool to improve outcomes for children and their families. The appraisal system supports coordinators to reflect on and improve their practice. Strategic goals, appraisal and professional learning priorities are becoming more aligned with the service's vision.

Key Next Steps

Service managers agree that the key next steps for the service are to:

  • strengthen internal evaluation to identify the impact of change across the organisation

  • rationalise planning, assessment and evaluation records so they better reflect how children's learning is extended through their interests and becomes more complex over time

  • develop differentiated planning across the Seedlings Education networks, to better respond to the particular cultural identities of each.

Management Assurance on Legal Requirements

Before the review, the staff and management of Seedlings Education 4 completed an ERO Home-based Education and Care Assurance Statement and Self-Audit Checklist. In these documents they attested that they have taken all reasonable steps to meet their legal obligations related to:

  • curriculum
  • premises and facilities
  • health and safety practices
  • governance, management and administration.

During the review, ERO looked at the service’s systems for managing the following areas that have a potentially high impact on children's wellbeing:

  • emotional safety (including positive guidance and child protection)

  • physical safety (including supervision; sleep procedures; accidents; medication; hygiene; excursion policies and procedures)

  • suitable staffing (including qualification levels; police vetting; teacher registration; ratios)

  • evacuation procedures and practices for fire and earthquake.

All early childhood services are required to promote children's health and safety and to regularly review their compliance with legal requirements.

Next ERO Review

When is ERO likely to review the service again?

The next ERO review of Seedlings Education 4 will be in three years.

Graham Randell

Deputy Chief Review Officer Northern

29 March 2017

The Purpose of ERO Reports

The Education Review Office (ERO) is the government department that, as part of its work, reviews early childhood services throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. ERO’s reports provide information for parents and communities about each service’s strengths and next steps for development. ERO’s bicultural evaluation framework Ngā Pou Here is described in SECTION 3 of this report. Early childhood services are partners in the review process and are expected to make use of the review findings to enhance children's wellbeing and learning.

2 Information about the Home-based Education and Care Service

Location

Manukau, Auckland

Ministry of Education profile number

47051

Institution type

Homebased Network

Licensed under

Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008

Number licensed for

50 children, including up to 50 aged under 2

Service roll

50

Standard or Quality Funded

Standard

Gender composition

Girls 29 Boys 21

Ethnic composition

Māori

Tongan

other Pacific

1

47

2

Number of qualified coordinators in the network

1

Required ratios of staff educators to children

Under 2

1:2

Over 2

1:4

Review team on site

February 2017

Date of this report

29 March 2017

Most recent ERO report(s) 

No previous ERO reports

 

3 General Information about Early Childhood Reviews

ERO’s Evaluation Framework

ERO’s overarching question for an early childhood education review is ‘How well placed is this service to promote positive learning outcomes for children?’ ERO focuses on the following factors as described in the bicultural framework Ngā Pou Here:

Pou Whakahaere – how the service determines its vision, philosophy and direction to ensure positive outcomes for children

Pou Ārahi – how leadership is enacted to enhance positive outcomes for children

Mātauranga – whose knowledge is valued and how the curriculum is designed to achieve positive outcomes for children

Tikanga whakaako – how approaches to teaching and learning respond to diversity and support positive outcomes for children.

Within these areas ERO considers the effectiveness of arotake – self review and of whanaungatanga – partnerships with parents and whānau.

ERO evaluates how well placed a service is to sustain good practice and make ongoing improvements for the benefit of all children at the service.

A focus for the government is that all children, especially priority learners, have an opportunity to benefit from quality early childhood education. ERO will report on how well each service promotes positive outcomes for all children, with a focus on children who are Māori, Pacific, have diverse needs, and are up to the age of two.

For more information about the framework and Ngā Pou Here refer to the draft methodology for ERO reviews in Home-based Education and Care Services: July 2014

ERO’s Overall Judgement and Next Review

The overall judgement that ERO makes and the timing of the next review will depend on how well placed a service is to promote positive learning outcomes for children. The categories are:

  • Very well placed – The next ERO review in four years
  • Well placed – The next ERO review in three years
  • Requires further development – The next ERO review within two years
  • Not well placed - The next ERO review in consultation with the Ministry of Education

ERO has developed criteria for each category. These are available on ERO’s website.

Review Coverage

ERO reviews are tailored to each service’s context and performance, within the overarching review framework. The aim is to provide information on aspects that are central to positive outcomes for children and useful to the service.